‘Girls just want to have fundamental rights’: Houston women prepare for march on Washington

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HOUSTON — Houston women are getting in formation — all in the name of girl power.

They're joining hundreds of thousands of women who are making their way to the capitol for the Women's March on Washington. The march is scheduled for Jan. 21, the day after Donald Trump officially takes office.

"The Women's March on Washington will send a bold message to our new administration on their first day in office, and to the world that women's rights are humans rights. We stand together, recognizing that defending the most marginalized among us is defending all of us," the national event organizers said in a statement.

Coordinator Nisha Randle of the Houston-area chapter said the march hasn't attracted only women inside the United States; it's a global movement.

"Overall we expect from half a million to 300 thousand ant that's just in DC. We have over 300 marches around the country. And another couple hundred around the world," Randle said.

Anna Julia, a Houston resident, is marching for basic access to healthcare and education.

"In my early 20s, I used Planned Parenthood to get my yearly pap smear," Julia said. "And they found something, it was minor, but it's something that if I hadn't taken care of then, it could of become much more serious."

Houstonian Elizabeth Fear said she is marching for anyone struggling with the outcome of the election.

"I know a lot of people are because I am just so fearful of the incoming administration. I'm afraid they're going to dismantle programs, any little progress that has been made," Fear said. "I haven't been active in politics before. But now, I'm ready."

Morénike Giwa Onaiwu, another Houston resident, said it's about more than women's rights but human rights as well.

"Women's rights are humans rights. I'm a woman of color. I'm a disabled person. I'm a parent. In Texas, around the nation, and around the world: we need change," Onaiwu said. "When I think about myself as a woman and the experiences that I've had, and that one in four women will experience sexual assault, it frightens me. I can't not march."

For those who want to march in solidarity with these women, Houston is having a march of its own. Randle said the Houston march is starting at the same time as the one in the District of Columbia.

Randle encourages people who cannot attend the marches to tune in.

"If you're not able to go to any of the marches, then I want you to watch on TV, and see the throngs of women all over the world, who are not only marching for themselves and for their families," Randle said. "They're marching for you."

She said we can't just go out and vote every four years, we have to be involved 365 days a year.